The Scarlet Scar
by youmentalretard
Summary: [This story (somewhat) follows the Lores and JoJ in LoL, pardon me if I do steer away somewhat from the original storylines though.] Among the times of war and fighting, Garen and Katarina find a strong but unwanted attraction to each other. Will they pull through, or will it finally be the cause of their nation's downfalls?
1. First Meeting

Hi guys, I'm new around here so I hope you enjoy my fanfic! Chapters will be regularly updated (I'm hoping this fic won't last too long) but I'll be studying so I hope you guys have the patience to wait around. This fanfic will follow the Journal of Justice and League Lores as close as possible, but I'll be adding in my own flair and storyline to it. Enjoy & do review! x

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The silence of war hung in the air, like a knife waiting for the most opportune moment to strike from the shadows. Two nations stood upon the battlefield, waiting for the most opportune moment to unleash their armies upon each other. Demacia, the continent's paragon of virtue amongst all the other city states, against Noxus, the moral antithesis of Demacia, where power reigns and not the king. Both have been at war for centuries, but today, only one will reign victorious... or will it? With the next generation added into the ranks of the army, Demacia and Noxus have set out for even greater heights with their children newly crowned as the pride and joy of their country.

Hailing from Demacia was Garen and Luxanna Crownguard, along with Prince Jarvan Lightshield the Forth and Xin Zhao joining the Demacian army, and for Noxus, Katarina and Cassiopeia Du Couteau, reigning from the House of Du Couteau along with Talon. With Swain also returned to active duty, he was as usual on the frontlines with his stick, with LeBlanc clinging onto his arm.

But then, something was amiss. The Demacians knew it, but they couldn't figure out what. Suddenly, a squawk was heard among the Demacian soldiers, and one by one they started falling like dominoes. Shocked, the leaders of the army turned back only to see a black raven flying out from amongst the fallen men. At that very moment, Swain shouted, "ATTACK!"

The Noxian army charged ahead and ran for the Demacians who were caught off guard. But most of the Demacians had regained their composure by the time the Noxians managed to close the distance between them. With each of the countries putting out their elite fighters, both Demacian and Noxian soldiers alike were soon bloodied and dead on the battlefield.

Amongst a throng of Noxian soldiers who had closed in on him, Garen spun with unparalleled speed, slicing through one Noxian soldier after another. "DEMACIAN JUSTICE!" Garen shouted, finishing off a Noxian general. And in that moment, he heard a whirling of steel blades, and one by one his comrades started falling beside him. Hearing a blade whistle through the air, Garen caught it before it could hit his head.

He looked up and saw a red haired beauty standing just a few meters away from him. A scar ran down the woman's left eye, the only flaw among her features. Without uttering a word, she disappeared, leaving a cloud of black smoke behind, only for Garen to realize she was now behind him. Before she could react though, Garen silenced her and moved out of her striking distance. Katarina was impressed. She hadn't met a worthy opponent in ages, and this match was one she wanted to savour and relish. She smirked and disappeared again, but this time not behind Garen. Instead, she started downing almost every Demacian nearby, save for Garen. Surprisingly, she left them all alive but stunned because of her lightning fast speeds. At last she reappeared behind Garen, but started spinning, throwing out black smoke along with her steel blades.

All the Demacian soldiers were dead; hit at their vital points. Even Garen's armor provided no coverage and he was injured by several blades. But once again he silenced her, and brought her spinning to a stop. The smoke was thrown back as if something just exploded on the battlefield, and in the middle of the smoke ring, stood Garen and Katarina staring at each other.

"At last we meet, Sinister Blade." Garen whispered. But Katarina heard him with no problem; assassins had excellent hearing, and she was no exception. "I have been looking forward to meeting you too, Garen Crownguard." He looked startled at her mention of his name. "You know my name?" Garen asked incredulously. Katarina smirked, tilting her head to one side. As she scraped her blades against one another, she replied, "Of course I know your name. Leader of the Dauntless Vanguard, aren't you? When we assassins do recon, we are extremely meticulous."

Although this was a battlefield and there was a war going on right there at that moment, Garen felt time stop. There was nobody else but him and Katarina right there. To him, he felt that this redhead was special and something about her took his breath away. But it was almost a fatal mistake. Katarina once again disappeared behind him, this time with a blade at his neck.

"I would kill you now, Garen Crownguard. But it has been a long time since I have met a worthy foe like you... and I look forward to meeting you again in the future," she whispered hotly into his ear, licking the shell. Garen stood there in shock that he had been caught off guard, and that the Sinister Blade was letting him walk away from this alive. He shivered as she said that, not with fear, but excitement. The meeting of a worthy foe such as her and so beautiful at that, left him anticipating their next meeting with joy. But knowing he couldn't let her get away, he swung his sword towards her with a mighty roar. Katarina jumped back and used her blades to stop Garen's sword. The two were lost in a symphony of clashing blades, so focused on each other that everyone gave them a wide berth, staying out of harm's way.

Katarina suddenly heard a squawk from Swain's raven, and she knew what to do. "'Till we meet again next time, Garen," she sneered. She then disappeared, and all the chaos seemed to resume around Garen. Shaking his head and realizing that it would've been fatal if he didn't pay attention, he chastised himself for letting his guard down. Rushing back to the Demacian side of the battlefield, he shouted, "RETREAT!"

And at the exact moment, he heard Katarina's voice over the crowd again. "RETREAT, NOXIANS!" He singled her out amongst the crowd with no problem at all; silky red hair and emerald eyes. Her High Command outfit had been sliced to expose some parts of her. She wasn't bleeding nor injured anywhere, but Garen found that he disliked her outfit at the current moment. Once again, he shook his head. What was happening to him? At that moment he looked up again, and saw Katarina staring at him. She smirked, the corner of her bloodred lips curling upwards at him, as if to say 'Till next time, Garen.' And Garen found himself breathless, for the first time in his entire life.

Luxanna returned from the battlefield safe and sound, and that comforted Garen somewhat. But in his head, all that mattered at that moment was Katarina. Katarina Du Couteau. Her eyes felt like they were burnt into his brain, and that definitely didn't bode well for him or his nation. "Hello? Brother?" Lux said, waving her hand in front of Garen's face. Garen, startled from his reverie, hastily replied, "Yes?"

Lux, being the caring little sister that she was, shook her head and started pulling out the blades that were left behind by Katarina out from Garen. "Ow!" Garen complained. "Shut up and be a man, big brother," Lux teased as she closed up his wounds with her healing spell. Garen took the blades from Lux and studied it. Almost every blade was carved with painstaking detail, and yet it was no work of a man, he could tell.

The initials 'S' were carved into her blades, and he assumed that it was because of her moniker, the Sinister Blade. Every single detail on the blade was intricately carved by a woman's hand, because he knew that a man wouldn't spend so much time on making his weapons pretty; he just wanted it to be able to destroy in one clean swipe. Garen, now even more impressed by Katarina, kept the blades away, and stared at the remaining Noxian flag standing in the bloody battlefield. This was just the beginning of two people from opposite stands... and Garen had a feeling it wouldn't end well.


	2. Let The Bloodshed Begin

Katarina sat in her League room, polishing her blades as she listened to Cassiopeia yak on about how she didn't deserve to be in her serpentine form. Rolling her eyes, she resolutely ignored her sister and started sharpening her blades again. "Rina! Are you listening to me or not?" Cassiopeia whined. Sighing, Katarina started rubbing her blade against the sharpening stone and said, "Yes, Cass. I am listening. But I have a match coming up soon, and I can't focus on chatting with you, okay? I need to prepare. The summoners will be asking for me soon."

Cassiopeia sighed in understanding. Muttering under her breath about how nobody took her seriously anymore, she slithered out of Katarina's room quietly. Not that Katarina wanted to push her sister away; she loved her very much, but it was hard when all Cassiopeia talked about was herself. After she finished resharpening her blades and polishing them, she looked at the clock. 7:56PM. The match would be in 4 minutes. Just about then, her notification screen popped up from the wall, which notified her of her supposed outfit that the summoner had picked.

"High Command... now that's something I haven't worn in a long while," Katarina mused, trying to recall the last time she had worn that outfit. And suddenly it came rushing back to her. The final war between Demacia and Noxus, before the League was created. And that was when... she first met Garen. Unbiddingly she blushed, remembering how stunning Garen was on the battlefield. And she frowned when she realized that she hadn't seen him since then. Ironically, he was also a League champion. But for some reason, the League hardly ever pitted them against each other in the games, which puzzled Katarina. Her buzzer rang, notifying her that the match was in 2 minutes. Shaking the memories off, she quickly put on her outfit and strapped her blades on. Looking into the mirror, she realized that her hair looked scraggly. After combing it into her usual silky red style, the summoning spell came upon her, and she was taken away to the waiting area.

"Katarina!" A loud voice boomed. "Good to have you on our team again," Darius grinned wickedly at her. Varus smiled at her from the other side of the room, and there also stood LeBlanc, giving her a pinky wave. "Where's the last person?" Katarina asked. Just as she finished her question, Morgana appeared. "Ugh, thank god I finished baking a while ago, I totally forgot about today's match. Oh my god, Katarina!" Morgana squealed, hugging Katarina tightly. Careful not to touch her wings, Katarina hugged her back. Angels hated people touching their wings. "I missed you, Morgana!" Katarina smiled. She treated Morgana as her older sister, and vice versa. Katarina would never admit this, but she loved baking pastries along with Morgana, throwing flour at each other.

So they grouped together, discussing strategies along with their summoners who were pretty confident about their team combination. Then, the champions were put onto Summoner's Rift. Katarina having picked top lane, took 3 potions and boots for sustain.

Checking the scoreboard for the opposite teams, she mentally memorized them down, muttering them out as she read it. "Ezreal... Soraka... hmm, Akali... Amumu... Garen." Then her eyes widened at the last champion. Garen? Katarina didn't know whether it was just her luck or that the League had finally allowed them to meet. "Hey Darius! Did you take smite?" Katarina shouted at Darius, before he stepped out of the fountain. "Yeah man I did, decided to jungle instead." Katarina sighed in relief.

Leaving for top, she waited with anticipation. The little minions hobbled up to the top, and Katarina started with farming. Throwing her blades out, it bounced from minion to minion. But where was Garen? Then suddenly she heard rustling in the brush and she gave a wry smile. "Garen, I know you're in there. Come out and quit living in the brush."

Garen walked out with a resigned look and started farming, though he couldn't farm that well because Katarina kept harassing him with her bouncing blades. "Hey Katarina, Amumu's headed top," Darius whispered. Katarina slowly edged away from the river and towards her own tower. "Darius, come up too. Might need help holding them off." And almost immediately, Amumu pulled himself towards Katarina from within the brush, and Garen broke into a run for her. Luring them under the tower with low health, she threw out her ultimate, killing Garen and injuring Amumu to low health. Darius came top and finished Amumu off. "Nice one Darius, push the lane for me will you? I'm going back to base." Recalling back to base, Katarina bought her items and set out for top again.

Garen knew that he shouldn't but the sight of Katarina just made him distracted. He wasn't at his top form, and Amumu couldn't stop nagging at him. Sure, Amumu was always sad, but he was naggier than Garen's mum and that said something. But he was determined to put his game face on, because he knew he couldn't let Katarina distract him. Not since the last time he had seen her. Contrary to her beliefs, he had seen her around the League. There was once he caught her smiling and laughing with Morgana, and that surprised him. Her smiles were rare, but when she did smile, even Talon blushed. (He knew. Thank God for conveniently placed brushes.)

And it was uneventful for the early stages of the game, save for a few failed ganks from Amumu. Proving right to the Summoners' assumptions, the game worked well in Katarina's advantage. She got two kills off Akali while the ninja was trying to gank top, which was really useful in helping with getting her items.

He was camping at one of his jungle brushes, hoping to get a kill, but instead, Garen managed to catch Katarina alone while she was trying to get red buff. He grabbed her by the waist and hid her in the brush. "Finally, a moment alone with the Sinister Blade. What were you thinking, walking into the enemy jungle like this?" Katarina blushed, but was thankful that Garen couldn't see it in the brush. "What do you want, Might of Demacia?" He smirked and tilted his head, just like how Katarina always did. "Mind if I borrow a kiss? I promise I'll return it." Then he meshed his lips to hers. Garen knew that it was risky, but he couldn't help it anymore. He had been thinking and wondering about how those scarlet lips would've tasted for the past few months, and he had refused any matches with her in it, hoping it would've dampened his desire for her. But now he just didn't care anymore.

Threading his fingers through her hair, he tilted her head and kissed her hard, nibbling on her lip. He was expecting resistance, but he met none. Instead, Katarina hugged his neck, tiptoeing for better access to his mouth. She wasn't about to pass up a golden opportunity like this where nobody knew and nobody would pay attention to a shared moment like this. In that moment, neither Noxus nor Demacia mattered; it was just them.

Garen - although really unwillingly - stopped kissing Katarina and winked before walking away. Katarina's blush intensified, and her lips were swollen from Garen's nibbles. "Oh no, what have I done?" Katarina whimpered, sinking to her knees. Fear spread through her when she realized that if this was found out, both she and Garen would be deemed traitors and thrown out of their nations.

"Katarina! Baron, now!" Darius yelled, scaring Katarina, who was lost in her thoughts. "C-coming!" Katarina stood up shakily and made her way to Baron, where she helped finish off the ginormous monster. Deciding on a final push to the nexus turrets, they managed to damage the nexus to half health before the other team had managed to gather back at base. Spotting Ezreal and Soraka, Katarina quickly shunpo-ed to Ezreal and started her ultimate. Everyone else helped finish the two off, where they then proceeded to try to finish off the nexus.

At that moment, Garen seemingly popped out of nowhere, finishing off 4 of Katarina's teammates in a quadra kill. By that time, Garen and Katarina was facing off without many minions left to damage the nexus further. Katarina threw her blades at him, but Garen silenced her, and started spinning. "Sinister steel!" Katarina whirled, gaining extra speed and shunpo-ed away from Garen to a friendly minion. Throwing one last blade at the nexus, she ended the game.

Garen and Katarina locked eyes, panting. Right before they were sent back to their different sections for healing, Katarina saw a gleam in Garen's eyes. And a whisper was heard in her head. "You haven't seen the last of me, dear little Katarina." She arrived back in the Noxian quarters, and she felt like she had the wind knocked right out of her. What did he mean by that? And what was he planning on doing?


	3. Only Fools Hesitate

Hi guys, I'm sorry to say that I will not be updating regularly due to the reason that my O Levels are this year! But do stay tuned :)

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Katarina walked into the house of Du Couteau, smelling the woodsy scent that she so loved and grew up with. She was on permanent leave from the League and it was time to relax... and to investigate her father's disappearance. She walked into her father's room, touching the chair that he so loved to lounge in while chatting with her. She slowly surveyed the armchair, trying to recall how her father looked like sitting in it, sipping his favourite cup of coffee. Then she noticed something sticking out from below the seat cushion.

Frowning, she tugged at it and out came an envelope. Surprised, she turned the envelope around to find that it was addressed to her. Quickly opening it, she read the letter inside. "To my dear Scarlet..." Katarina smiled at the nickname her father had given her; a tribute to her bloodred hair and lips. As she read on, Katarina felt confused. In the letter, her father elaborated on a scheme that assumably was planned by the League to pit Demacia and Noxus against each other.

Puzzled, Katarina read on. "To my consternation, you will have to work with someone to solve this... conspiracy. You will find enclosed in the envelope who. Best of luck, Scarlet." Her father was never this formal with her, so she knew it was something really important. She reached into the envelope and found a piece of paper with the numbers on it...74. 74? Katarina was puzzled. Who could this person be? Then she remembered as a child, her father would always chide her for writing 7 in replacement of a J. J... J4... Jarvan IV?

Walking out of the room, she crashed into someone. "Ow! Watch where you're going, sheesh." Katarina looked up and saw Talon. "Oh, it's you." Talon merely raised an eyebrow at her. "Eh, I need to um... get going," Katarina muttered, clutching the envelope behind her back. "What's that in your hand?" Talon questioned. "Eh, just something my father left behind for me..." Katarina tried to slink away, but Talon grabbed her arm. "No touching. Ever." Katarina jerked her arm out of Talon's grasp.

Talon smiled sheepishly. "Is that the League conspiracy? Because I've been tasked with solving that too, but I have no leads currently. Did General Du Couteau give you any clues?" Katarina narrowed her eyes at him, but nodded. "We need to contact Jarvan IV, fast." They quickly made a trip back to the League, and started looking for the Crown Prince. Apparently he was in a match, so Katarina left a note for him under his room door.

Around 9pm, Jarvan knocked on Talon's door. Talon opened the door and peeked at who it was before opening it and letting Jarvan in. Jarvan regarded them with neutrality, but it was obvious he wasn't comfortable being in the same room as two assassins. "Um, what's this about?" Jarvan IV asked. Katarina sat on a chair with her arms crossed, looking as uncomfortable as he was, but she answered first. "We think the League has set up a conspiracy to pit Noxus and Demacia against each other in a bid to claim the nexuses in Kalamanda. My father, while investigating this matter has also disappeared. We've discovered a lead but we're going to have to go into Demacia for it; that's where my father last went before he disappeared."

Jarvan raised a suspicious eyebrow. "How do I know you're not trying to trick me to let you into Demacia to assassinate my army?" Katarina and Talon sighed in exasperation. "If we wanted to, we'd have done so already. But this time, we need your help because it involves Demacia. We can't let anyone else know. So do you have any idea on how to sneak us both into Demacia?" Katarina asked in frustration. "I might have an idea..." Jarvan smiled cockily. "But I'm not sure whether you both'll like it." Talon and Katarina looked at each other uneasily.

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"Now keep under the hood and look at the floor so the people won't see your face," Jarvan said, tying Katarina and Talon's hands to ropes, so that he could guide them into the city as his 'prisoners'. Katarina muttered something inaudibly, but it was obvious that she wasn't very happy about the idea. Jarvan swung himself onto his trusty steed, and began a slow trot towards the city walls. "Prince Jarvan!" one of the guards exclaimed, surprised to see him. "Let me in, these are the prisoners I have captured and I need to put them in the dungeons immediately." "Of course, Prince! At once!" The guards opened the door, and in the three of them went. As he trotted along the streets, Garen, who was informed of his return, squeezed his way through the crowd to get to Jarvan IV.

"Prince Jarvan!" Garen shouted. "Do you need any help with the prisoners?" Jarvan waved him away, saying "It's fine, Garen. Your assistance will not be needed." "But Prince, we have much to discu-" and Jarvan retorted, "No, Garen. This has nothing to do with you." "But who ARE your prisoners, Jarvan? We need to know." The crowd murmured in agreement with Garen's question.

"This is the business of the crown. Your loyalty is appreciated, Garen, but the Dauntless Vanguard has no place in this matter. Stand down," Jarvan ordered. Garen bowed, and retreated. But while he backed away, he saw a flash of red hair from the female prisoner. Garen quickly made his way home, wondering if it was actually Katarina that the prince had captured.

Jarvan made his way to the castle as quick as possible, before releasing Katarina and Talon from the ropes. "Be careful, and disguise yourselves fast. Especially you, Katarina. Your hair is a dead giveaway for who you are." Katarina nodded, before disappearing into the shadowy corridors of the castle. Seems that even Demacia has its dark side.


End file.
